In July, Governor Bruce Rauner signed a measure extending the state’s medical marijuana pilot program from January 2018 to July 2020. But as a condition, Illinois' Public Health Director now has sole discretion over adding more qualifying conditions, leaving no power to a re-constituted panel of experts. Chicago Tribune reporter Robert McCoppin recently wrote on current efforts to add them, relying largely on court rulings tied to a series of lawsuits.

A Cook County judge has ordered Illinois Department of Public Health Director Nirav Shah to add chronic post operative pain to the list of conditions that can be treated with medical marijuana in the state. Shah has thirty days to act. There have been a series of lawsuits to add conditions to the program. Attorney Michael Goldberg says Shah was trying to change the rules for what conditions could be added "mid-stream."

A judge has ordered Illinois’ Public Health Director to reconsider chronic post-operative pain as a qualifying condition for the state’s medical marijuana pilot program.

A measure extending the sunset date for Illinois medical marijuana pilot program passed the Illinois House Monday, and now heads to the state Senate.

Illinois Medical Cannabis Advisory Board Chair Leslie Mendoza Temple wants more feedback from Gov. Rauner's administration after 11 conditions were rejected for treatment.  Three of them, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, were endorsed a second time by the panel last week.